


ever wonder what stars taste like?

by ncirpng



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Awkward Flirting, Fluff, M/M, Mutual Pining, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Paris (City), Shy Dan Howell, low key kpop refrences, phil has a crushhhhh
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-30
Updated: 2018-02-04
Packaged: 2019-03-11 09:43:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,206
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13521609
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ncirpng/pseuds/ncirpng
Summary: au where phil runs a successful café in paris and dan is a shy fashion designer. their paths cross, which leads to an unhealthy amount of awkwardness and a lot of weird sentences (mostly from phil)





	1. who's the cutie?

**Author's Note:**

> i posted this on my wattpad a while back, but now that i have an ao3 account i wanted to share it with y'all! :)  
> enjoy!

phil inhales, the familiar scent of freshly baked macarons filling his nose. he gently squeezes the piping bag, flicking his wrist in a quick circular motion allowing a dollop vanilla cream to land on the pastry. he meticulously places the top half of the rose-flavored macaron on top of the filling. he repeats this sequence until he has a dozen beautiful pastries.

phil walks out of the kitchen, humming a cheerful tune as he carries the tray over to a large display case. sunlight fills the café and small particles of dust dance through the air as phil takes a moment to enjoy the quiet morning.

he walks to the corner of the café where there is a cozy window seat with a collection of brightly colored pillows. on the windowsill are dozens of small cacti and succulents. phil picks up a little spray bottle and mists the plants with water.

meow. phil turns around to greet millie, the old brown cat that has lived in the café since she was a kitty. "hello!" he cheerfully coos, listening to millie purr as he pats her small head.

phil's phone vibrates from in the pocket of his apron. 8:30. he gets up and opens the front door. millie meows, upset by the sudden lack of attention from phil, and curls up on the window seat. meanwhile, phil flips the little sign on the door from 'closed' to 'open'. he enjoys the fresh morning air and listens to the sounds of the parisian rush hour as he takes the chairs off of the small tables and neatly sets them.

"good morning phil!" a voice says as phil sets up the last table. he turns to see his good friend dodie clark standing by the door.

"good morning dodie!" he responds with a smile and leads her into the café.

dodie's brown hair is in a messy french braid and she wears a pair of large round glasses. phil fixes her a small plate of lemon macarons that match her bright yellow dress and an espresso. she has her ukulele with her; she performs in the morning and helps bus tables in the afternoons.

"answer me honestly," dodie demands, looking straight into phil's bright blue eyes. "how long have you been here this morning?"

"since four." he mumbles, an ashamed blush dusting his cheeks.

"damn phil. do you ever sleep?"

every morning she asks this, and every morning phil's answer is the same.

"who needs sleep when there's coffee?"

dodie chuckles, shaking her head as she carries her treats over to a little table. she takes a sip of her coffee before taking her ukelele out of its case and carefully tuning it.

the chime of little bells fill the café as a man about phil's age enters.

"good morning peej!" phil greets his best friend, pj liguori.

"morning phil." he responds, walking behind the counter and into the kitchen. he returns moments later, tying a light blue apron around his waist. his nametag says 'hi i'm pj' with little planets and stars doodled around the corners.

pj mostly takes care of the coffee orders. he is especially skilled in making little pictures in latte foam, which earns phil plenty of customers from people's instagram posts.

not to mention that his pastries are some of the best in paris. phil has won numerous awards that he is proud of, yet too humble to display.

moments later, customers begin to fill the quiet café. dodie pulls out a small leather bound notebook filled with cute little songs that compliment the atmosphere perfectly. she is an amazing singer and phil hopes she will make it big someday.

i told you i was looking for some empathy  
well you fooled me  
just a touch and a thought and i was gone  
and now someone's gonna get to know the better you  
when I was supposed to  
oh, oh, oh why did it have to be you

"OH MY GOD SORRY I'M LATE!" a voice announces, clearly flustered. chris, another one of phil's good friends and employees bursts through the door and behind the counter. "i'm so sorry phil, i woke up late and the metro was so crowded." he apologizes, tying an apron around his waist that matches pj's, except his nametag just says 'chris' in block letters.

"don't worry about it chris, you were only a few minutes late." phil reassures him, placing his hand on chris's shoulder.

"thank you." he responds before retreating to the kitchen.

the morning passes by quickly, as mornings typically do. phil finishes a batch of lavender macarons and accidentally gets the purple filling on his blue, green, and yellow checkered apron. he grabs the towel that was resting on his shoulder and tries to wipe off the gooey filling before it stains.

he is so focused that he doesn't hear the front door bells chime.

"uhm, excuse me sir?" a voice asks so softly, phil almost didn't hear it. he flings the towel over his shoulder and looks up.

"sorry about that, how may i help y-you?" phil barely finishes his sentence as he gets a good look at the customer standing in front of him trying to read the menu. he is definitely not a regular, he looks to be younger than phil, possibly fresh out of college.

he has brown hair that is neatly shaved on the sides, with little curls that graze his left eyebrow. he is wearing a long black and white plaid button up, that is buttoned all the way, and a pair of black earrings.

"i-i'm sorry, sir. i am not from here a-and i can't, um, read french very well." the customer mumbles, an embarrassed blush dusting his cheeks and nose as he stares down at the marble countertop.

"oh, here." phil hands him an english menu. he completely understands the man, having only lived in paris for 4 years.

moments later he speaks up, "can i get a plain iced coffee?"

"o-of course, that will be €4." phil tries to stop staring at the man, but he's almost like a magnet that constantly attracts phil's attention. he adjusts his fringe as the man hands him four bills.

"thank you." phil replies and the man nods, his deep brown eyes swiftly meeting phil's, before turning to find a table.

phil quickly helps the next customer before rushing to the bathroom. he lets out a breath he didn't know he was holding in and studies his reflection in the mirror. his cheeks are flushed and there is pink icing in his fringe.

he grips the sides of the sink and stares right into his reflection. "get it together phil." he mumbles to himself, before wiping the icing out of his hair and washing his hands.

"talking to yourself? ouch." pj comments, standing by the employee lockers as phil walks out of the bathroom.

"what?" phil responds, rather defensively.

"come on, man. i saw what happened out there. you need to talk to him." pj replies, talking about the shy customer.

"wh- but i-" phil starts.

"you'll be thanking me later." pj exclaims with a wink as he walks out of the employee area.

what was that about? phil ponders. moments later he shrugs before heading back to the counter.

that afternoon, phil works as usual, but constantly finds himself glancing toward the far left corner of the café where the man sits. from afar, phil is able to see that he is wearing ripped black skinny jeans and odd sneakers that have zippers instead of laces.

dodie notices him staring at the customer and gives phil a wink. he quickly ducks under the counter and pretends to restock the display, earning an eye roll from his friend.

one thing, in particular, bothers phil. as dodie performs, the man wears his ear buds as if he's trying to block out his surroundings. phil finds this extremely rude, but decides to let dodie deal with him if it bothers her.

"you need to stop that, mate." chris says from behind, causing phil to jump.

"i, uh- stop what?" phil responds, his voice a few octaves higher than usual.

"staring at that customer, you're going to scare him away." chris responds, matter-of-factly.

phil takes this opportunity to glance over at the man, who is bent over petting millie. phil notices dimples accenting his smile.

"uhh hello? phil, you're doing it again." chris whines, causing phil to quickly turn around. "look, i gotta go, my shift is over. but please, for your own sake, talk to him."

phil sighs in defeat, "what do i say?"

"well start off with 'hello i'm phil' and whatever's on your mind." dodie responds, clearly having overheard the conversation.

"good luck, mon ami." chris says, patting phil's back as he removes his apron and clocks out.

dodie offers to work the counter so phil can complete his mission.

i guess it's now or never. phil thinks to himself with a sigh. he grabs a plate and carefully arranges three cappuccino macarons on it.

phil carefully walks through the café, tightly gripping the plate and trying not to trip anywhere. he safely makes it to the table and nervously gulps, realizing that he has to talk now. he can feel his friends staring into his back, studying his every move like a group of teenagers watching their friend talk to their crush.

phil clears his throat, but the man doesn't notice. he seems to be sketching something in the large notebook in front of him. his laptop screen is blank, having been long forgotten.

phil lets out a shaky breath and taps on the man's shoulder. he looks up, simultaneously pulling out his earbuds.

"hi i'm phil. ever wonder what stars taste like?" before realizing what he just asked, phil sees the man's eyes go wide. he looks horrified and on the verge of a panic attack. phil curses under his breath, making a mental note to slap himself later.

"ugh, sorry. i, uh, brought you these." he sets the plate of macarons on the table, "you mentioned you were new to the area earlier so i wanted to say welcome to paris."

the man's gaze drifts from phil to the macarons, then to phil again.

"t-thank you." he practically whispers and phil smiles, hoping he will smile in return. phil really just wants to see his dimples again.

"so, uh, what's your name?" phil asks. the man just looks down at his notebook, and an awkward silence passes between them and phil messes with his fringe more than he probably should.

"well, i better get back to work. those macarons don't bake themselves." phil eventually says in an attempt to break the silence. the man lets out a soft chuckle, showing off one of his dimples even though he's still facing down at his notebook.

phil smiles awkwardly, then walks back behind the counter.

"that was brutal." pj comments when phil returns, earning a slap on the arm from dodie.

"at least he talked to him, peej." she snaps, before turning to phil with a smile. "you did great."

phil just nods and tries to busy himself by baking more macarons. the rest of the evening, he doesn't look at the man once.

"he ate the macarons." dodie tells phil sometime during one of her many trips back and forth between the tables and the kitchen. she shows him the plate as if phil needed proof. he flashes her a small smile.

"aww phil, cheer up," dodie says, putting her arm around phil's shoulders. "he's been looking over at you every thirty seconds." she whispers in his ear before walking into the kitchen, leaving phil with a deep blush spreading across his cheeks.

eventually it gets late, dodie and pj clock out for the night and wink at phil, but he can't seem figure out why.

phil hums to himself as he cleans up the café and goes through his nightly routine. he flips the door sign to 'closed' and takes off his apron. he turns to grab his jacket and keys off of the counter, then out of the corner of his eye, he notices a figure shaped like a human.

he lets out a surprised yell, and so does the figure. phil turns to see the shy customer. he seems to be flustered, quickly shoving his belongings into a backpack.

"i'm sorry to startle you, i didn't notice you were still here." phil apologizes. the man gets up out of his chair, careful to push it back underneath the table.

"i'm so sorry, sir. i didn't realize you were trying to close." he mumbles, his chocolate eyes looking directly into phil's, a rosy blush dusting his cheeks.

"i'm just glad i saw you before i locked up." phil responds with an awkward laugh and the man smiles, the dimples returning.

"my, uh, name is dan by the w-way." he says, holding out his hand.

phil shakes it and feels himself blush from the contact. phil notices his hands are very soft. "hi dan, i'm phil."

"you already told me that." dan responds with a soft laugh.

"you got me there." phil admits as they both walk towards the door. phil grabs his keys and jacket from the counter and flips off the lights.

they both exit the café and dan waits for phil to lock the door behind him, before turning to the left and walking down the sdewalk.

"goodnight dan!" phil calls after him with an awkward wave.

dan doesn't respond, but turns and gives phil a two fingered salute.

that was all phil needed for his heart to burst into tiny pieces.


	2. don't you just love the rain?

phil waited for him.

even after four days passed with no sign of dan, phil found himself constantly watching the door. every time the bells above the front door would jingle, phil would immediately begin scanning the cafe for the curly haired boy. phil would linger around the cafe after closing time, just in case dan came in late.

after five days of waiting, phil gave up hope. dan must have been too embarrassed to return. phil went through his day as normal and promptly closed the café that night.

the next morning, phil was not himself. he woke up at seven and barely had time to stop at starbucks for coffee. phil loved getting his coffee early in the morning before the lines got long. unfortunately, he had hit the morning rush hour and the lines were crazy.

phil shoved his hands in the pockets of his denim jacket and continued his walk to work. phil finally reached the café where dodie, pj, and even chris were waiting outside for him. it was already 8:15 which meant he only had fifteen minutes to set up and open.

"phil! we were getting worried that you weren't coming." dodie exclaimed as he fumbled with his keys before finding the right one to unlock the café.

"sorry, i overslept." phil explained, his cheeks pink from embarrassment.

"i figured as much, you look horrible." pj commented and chris chimed in, "yeah i've never seen you sport a quiff in public before."  
phil's embarrassed blush spread as he ran his fingers through his hair, exposing his forehead even more. he unlocked the door and began walking to the kitchen.

“so, were you up too late doing that shy boy?” chris inquired suggestively and phil nearly tripped over his own feet in surprise. phil opened his mouth to respond, but dodie beat him to it.

"ugh do you two have filters?" she asked from behind, glaring pj and chris before turning to phil, "also don't worry about your quiff, it looks cute and i'm sure that dan would agree."

"thanks, dodie." phil mumbled in response, before grabbing his apron and opening the café.

as the café sprang to life, so did phil. he loved seeing the smile on his customers’ face as he handed them a bag of pasties or a latte.

he had almost forgotten about dan. that is until about noon, when the shy curly haired boy appeared at the door. he was wearing an oversized black and white striped jumper and black skinny jeans with way too many pockets. phil watched dan out of the corner of his eye as he inched toward the counter.

phil nervously gulped. “how may i help you?”

“can i, um, get an iced coffee and some of those macaron thingys you gave me last time?” dan responded, his left hand rubbing the back of his neck.

“of course. that will be €7. for here or to-go?” phil asked as dan held out his card.

“to-go, please.” dan responded and phil’s heart sank. he handed dan the receipt and a pen.

“you lost your stutter.” phil observed aloud and dan momentarily looked up at phil before returning his gaze to the receipt he was signing.

“oh, i guess i, uh, did.” dan replied, handing phil the receipt. phil walked to the display and picked out three of the best looking cappuccino macarons, placing them in a paper bag. as he handed dan the bag, their fingertips swiftly met, causing dan to mumble a “sorry” before grabbing his coffee and rushing out of the café.

phil let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding in and pinched the bridge of his nose. why was every encounter with dan so awkward? phil looked down at the receipt and noticed something written at the bottom. it was a phone number.

phil’s heart leapt out of his chest and a grin spread across his face. he must have been too busy being socially awkward to notice dan writing it.

that afternoon, phil is in a cheerful mood. even though it began to drizzle outside, a smile remained glued to phil’s face.

unfortunately that evening as phil closed up the café, the rain picked up tremendously. it was now pouring and phil didn’t have the time to check the weather that morning, so he doesn’t have an umbrella with him.

phil sighed and braced himself for a miserable walk home. he locked up the café, then tugged on his jacket, tightly folding his arms around his torso in an attempt to keep his phone dry.

he ventured out into the cold rain and the walk was oddly peaceful. phil took in the constant pitter patter of raindrops on the pavement and the golden glow of street lamps reflected in puddles. he was already soaked, so phil slowed his pace to a stroll, enjoying the scenery.

“phil?” a voice called from behind. phil stopped and turned to see dan jogging up behind him, holding an umbrella. as soon as he was close enough, dan held the umbrella over the both of their heads. phil thanked him and they continued walking.

“you’re soaked.” dan remarked, looking phil up and down. phil blushed slightly but dan didn’t seem to notice, because a worried look spread across his face. “you’re going to freeze. let me take you back to my flat and make you some tea.”

phil opened his mouth to decline out of politeness, even though his heart was screaming yes, but dan stopped him. “please? My place is literally two blocks away, we’ll be there in no time.”

“okay.” phil gave in, eager to warm up.

dan and phil walked in silence the rest of the way to dan’s apartment building, which surprisingly was only two blocks away. phil apologized numerous times for dripping water everywhere in the lobby, but dan just laughed and repeatedly said it was okay.

they finally reached dan’s flat. strangely, it looked exactly how phil would have imagined. it was modern and minimalistic with sleek black and white furniture, but also had somewhat of a historic french flair.

“follow me.” dan commanded, gesturing for phil to follow him down a short hallway to what phil assumed was dan’s room. dan disappeared into a closet and phil looked around his room. he couldn’t help but smile when he noticed dan’s duvet is literally the black and white version of his own.

dan returned with a small stack of clothes. “change into these and i can dry your clothes.”

phil eagerly thanked him and took the clothes as dan led him to a bathroom.

“you can use whatever you would like. i’ll be in the kitchen making tea.” dan informed phil with a smile, before closing the door and walking to the kitchen.

phil quickly took off his itchy wet clothes and put on the clothes dan gave him. phil blushed slightly as he looked in the mirror. he was wearing dan’s camo jumper and a pair of dan’s boxers. the jumper was a bit big on him and covered up a lot of phil’s thigh, making it appear that he was wearing no pants. his raven black hair formed small curls on his forehead. as if they were attempting to copy dan’s fluffy curls.

phil jumped as he heard a knock on the door. “hey phil, do you want earl grey or chamomile?” phil opened the door, having finished changing, and responded. “earl grey sounds nice.” phil noticed dan’s cheeks turn pink as he looked at him.

“um phil?” dan asked.

“yeah?” phil replied.

“um, where are your, uh, pants?” dan continued.

“you didn’t give me any?” phil responded and dan’s eyes go wide.

“ohmygosh i’m so sorry i’m such an idiot!” dan exclaimed, running into his room and returned moments later with a pair of sweatpants. phil put them on as dan took his wet clothes into another closet where he assumed the dryer must be.

phil wandered around the flat until he found the kitchen. dan returned shortly thereafter and placed a kettle on the stove before turning to phil. “again phil, i’m sorry about that.”

“oh, it’s o-okay. i’m very thankf-ful for your h-hospitality.” phil responded, his teeth chattering slightly. dan smiled, revealing his dimples and phil’s heart literally skipped a beat.

“why don’t you go sit in the lounge as i finish making your drink. there’s a fluffy grey blanket you can use to warm up.” dan suggested and phil eagerly complied.

a few minutes later, dan walked over to the couch where phil was sitting and handed him a steaming mug of tea.

“thank you so, so much.” phil responded for probably the thirtieth time that night, and took a sip as dan sat down next to him.

they sat in a comfortable silence, both taking sips of their tea every so often. “so what do you do? like for a living? i know this jumper probably costs more than my rent.” phil asked with a chuckle.

“actually, i’m unemployed.” dan responded and phil nearly choked on his tea. “both of my parents are surgeons who make a shit ton of money, which is how i can afford so many nice things. right now i’m still pretty fresh out of university, but i moved to paris to take some classes on fashion design. my dream job is to design clothes for kpop groups and i actually have meeting with a representative from big hit entertainment next week.”

“i have no idea what the last part means but congratulations, i guess.” phil awkwardly responded, desperately trying to come up with a question to keep the conversation going. “how are you adjusting to life here?” phil asks, suddenly remembering that dan had only recently moved to paris.

“it’s definitely different than london, but the last few days i’ve realized how many people here actually speak english, or at least a little bit.” dan paused, then gestured to phil with a shy smile that showed off his dimples, “and of course there was you, phil. you were the first person who was kind to me. not to mention, you’re hella cute.”

this time, phil actually spit out his tea. his eyes widened and he spewed out a string of apologies as he ran into the kitchen. phil’s heart and mind was racing. how could someone who appeared shy just a few days earlier suddenly flirt so nonchalantly??

phil grabbed a handful of paper towels and jogged back into the lounge where dan was laughing so hard, he was tearing up. phil scowled at him as he walked over to the sofa and began to wipe up the mess.

“h-here, let me h-help you.” dan offered in between giggles and grabbed a few paper towels. they worked together for a few moments in silence until all of the tea was gone.

“it looks like there’s some on your chin, doofus.” dan chuckled. he slowly reached up and brushed away the tea on phil’s chin with his thumb, but didn’t move it when he was finished.

phil studied dan’s face. there was a soft yellow glow on his pink cheeks from a nearby lamp and his hair was extra curly from the rain.

curious brown eyes met startled blue ones, as if asking permission to continue. dan slid his hand from phil’s chin to his cheek, softly caressing it.

“dan.” phil breathed out as dan swiftly but firmly pressed his lips against phil’s.

god, phil loved the rain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yes, ik it's dumb that phil likes to get coffee from strabucks when he owns a cafe just go with it.  
> also sorry this chapter is kinda crappy, at least there was some good fluff! i honestly have no idea where i'm going with this fic so feel free to leave suggestions!!  
> <3


End file.
